Gaspar de Jesus (B.I.D. ’01) is one of six designers selected to compete on Ellen’s Design Challenge, a new HGTV series from the Emmy Award-winning entertainer and comedian Ellen DeGeneres that premiered on January 26.

The show follows the designers as they tackle challenges to sketch, design, and build extraordinary furniture within a set timeframe. The series, which was conceptualized by DeGeneres, is hosted by television personality Jay Montepare.  Amanda Dameron, editor-in-chief of Dwell, and Christiane Lemieux, executive creative director of Wayfair.com, are participating as judges in the competition.

In his audition video for the show, de Jesus showcased work that he created for his Pratt senior thesis project and shared some of his thoughts on design. “To me, design is an emotion, it’s a feeling,” he explains in the video.

The winner of Ellen’s Design Challenge will receive a $100,000 cash prize courtesy of Wayfair.com and see his or her work featured in HGTV Magazine.

More information about the show can be found here. To view de Jesus in his audition video, click here.

Image: Gaspar de Jesus works on a project for Ellen’s Design Challenge (photo: courtesy of Scripps Networks Interactive)